Following a report earlier this week suggesting Apple had considered purchasing Tesla, Tesla CEO Elon Musk today confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg Television that his company "had conversations" with Apple. Musk went on to say that he could not comment on whether the conversations had revolved around any kind of acquisition, but he did confirm that at the current time, an acquisition of Tesla seems "very unlikely."
If one or more companies had approached us last year about such things there's no way we could really comment on that. We had conversations with Apple, I can't comment on whether those revolved around any kind of acquisition.
News of Apple's meeting with Tesla first came to light over the weekend, when the San Francisco Chronicle reported Musk had met with Adrian Perica, Apple's head of acquisitions, and possibly Apple CEO Tim Cook. While the site speculated the meeting pertained to a possible acquisition, other sources have since suggested Apple may have been meeting with Tesla over iOS device integration in the company's electric cars or about a potential battery deal between the two.
As noted by The Los Angeles Times, Musk last month announced plans for a massive lithium-ion battery plant, which will be constructed in partnership with "some other companies." Tesla is expected to make an announcement about the plant later this month, and it's possible Apple, which uses lithium-ion batteries for many of its portable devices, could be involved in that venture.
When asked whether Tesla was for sale, Musk told the interviewer that an acquisition was unlikely because the company needs to stay "super focused" on its goal of creating an affordable electric car, though he did not rule out the possibility of an acquisition entirely.
If there was a scenario where it seemed like it would be more likely that we would be able to create the mass market sort of affordable, compelling car then possibly it would make sense to entertain those discussions. I don't currently see any scenario that would improve that probability, so that's why I think it's very unlikely.
Apple CEO Tim Cook recently said the company is open to making large acquisitions if it makes sense, but he has also said that Apple will focus on the very few products that "deserve all our energy." Apple currently holds nearly $160 billion in cash while Tesla has a market cap of approximately $24 billion.
Tuesday October 1, 2024 2:09 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple is working on a new iPad mini that will "potentially" be released "by the end of 2024," according to a report today from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Last month, Gurman reported that Apple had "new iPads in the works," including an upgraded version of the iPad mini. At the time, he said the device was "on deck for Apple's October event" alongside the first M4 Macs. The wording in his...
Thursday October 3, 2024 2:22 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released iOS 18.0.1 and iPadOS 18.0.1, the first updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that debuted earlier in September. iOS 18.0.1 and iPadOS 18.0.1 come two weeks after the launch of iOS 18. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes, the...
Tuesday October 1, 2024 1:57 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to release new MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini models with the M4 series of chips "this year," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman initially said these Macs would likely be announced during a virtual event this October, but he has been more vague about the timing lately, with wording such as "in the coming weeks" and now merely "this year." In any case, it is clear that...
Friday September 27, 2024 6:14 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple is set to release iOS 18.1 in October, bringing the first set of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update marks a significant step forward in Apple's AI integration, offering a new Siri contextually-aware experience and a range of additional capabilities powered by on-device machine learning and large language models. There are a couple of handy new...
Thursday October 3, 2024 2:27 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.0.1, the first update for the macOS Sequoia operating system. The 15.0.1 update comes a week after Apple first released macOS Sequoia 15. Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia update by using the Software Update section of System Settings. According to Apple's release notes, macOS Sequoia 15.0.1 fixes a bug that could cause the Messages app...
Tuesday October 1, 2024 5:47 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch sometime in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as...
Wednesday October 2, 2024 5:50 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Following the release of iOS 18 for the iPhone last month, Apple is preparing to release iOS 18.0.1 with bug fixes in the near future. We previously reported that Apple has been internally testing iOS 18.0.1, and today a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing iOS-related information said the update will have a build number of 22A3370. We expect iOS 18.0.1 to be a minor ...
Tuesday October 1, 2024 11:47 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
The calendar has turned to October, and it should be another busy month for Apple. Apple is likely to hold another event this month to announce new Macs and iPads, and there are also a couple of iOS 18 updates that are expected to be released soon. Below, we outline six new things to expect from Apple this month. MacBook Pro Apple plans to announce updated 14-inch and 16-inch...
Thursday October 3, 2024 6:27 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple in October will release macOS Sequoia 15.1, bringing to Macs the first Apple Intelligence features such as Writing Tools, new Siri features, Smart Replies, and more. In addition, macOS 15.1 adds a handful of welcome tweaks and improvements to existing Mac capabilities. Here's what we can expect from the first major update to macOS Sequoia later this month. Note that Apple...
I'd personally prefer to see Tesla make it on their own. They've done so much, and they have the potential to be another Apple-like company on their own.
So many innovative companies are being consumed by the current giants. That's not a bad thing, per say, but I'd just like to see some companies stick it out on their own.
Odds are these Apple / Tesla talks are about getting "iOS in the Car" designed into the next model years of Teslas. The Tesla X may be the first to ship with iOS in the Car.
They are local to Apple and don't have the decades of Not Invented Here that way too many automotive manufactures have towards their center electronic stacks.
Here's a wild thought: Elon Musk as the next CEO of Apple.
Elon's ambitions are much bigger than Apple's focus. While he might make a good CEO, I doubt he'd remain happy for long. The world is better off with Elon doing his own thing.
Following a report earlier this week suggesting Apple had considered purchasing Tesla, Tesla CEO Elon Musk today confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg Television that his company "had conversations" with Apple. Musk went on to say that he could not comment on whether the conversations had revolved around any kind of acquisition, but he did confirm that at the current time, an acquisition of Tesla seems "very unlikely."
